Echuca Moama Photography Club (EMPC)

The inaugural General meeting was held 11th October 2013 and the first committee was voted in. Incorporation was one of the discussion items on the agenda.  Vera became the EMPC’s first president.  An Events Committee, Fundraising Committee and Newsletter Committee was established.  The Judge Stewards Committee was established in 2015.

The EMPC joined VAPS that year and became incorporated in 2014.

The first EMPC newsletter “Focal Point” was released April 2014. This started as a bi-monthly publication which would feature a member’s winning image on the front cover and include reports on club field trips and workshops, competition results and VAPS information. The newsletter became a quarterly publication before ceasing in November 2017.

As the club and interest grew, meeting frequency increased from bi-weekly to weekly, with meetings being held every Wednesday night except in school holidays. The first club events calendar was established in 2014 with regular set competition themes, workshops and other events scheduled.

In 2013, the monthly competition consisted of a set theme only.  In 2014, an Open category was added to the monthly competition line up.  In 2015 a Monochrome competition was added to the list of regular monthly competitions and this format has been retained since.  In 2017 the monthly competition was further expanded by introducing a Novice and Intermediate classification to allow both beginner and more experienced photographers to compete in competitions without disadvantage.

The EMPC entered its first VAPS Competition in 2014 and has participated every year since with the most successful year being 2017. Vera Curnow achieved placings in the AVI sections a number of times and won the AVI for her “Lament for My Boy” at VAPS in 2017 a wonderful achievement.

In 2013, the EMPC held its first annual awards competition and awards night.

Vera resigned from the presidency in 2015 after establishing a popular and enthusiastic club.  In recognition of her dedication to the EMPC and photography and her prodigious efforts, the “Vera Curnow Perpetual Trophy” was established in 2015. The trophy is for ‘The most outstanding photographer’ and is presented at the annual awards night.  The inaugural presentation of this annual award was made to Brent Colbert.

The EMPC is a club that encourages participation and sharing of our collective interest in all things photography, to all level and ages and the valuable spin-off of this is a genuine warmth and camaraderie between members.

We now currently have 46 financial members as of October 2018